U.S.-Cuba deal: What the two sides get out of it

President Barack Obama has inverted U.S. policy on Cuba. His Wednesday speech adopted the proposals of those who have spent a half-century arguing for a rethinking of Cuba policy. The president recognized Washington’s failure to achieve its goal of bringing political and economic openness to Cuba.

Rather than continue its quarantine, Washington is seeking more exchanges with the island nation, more trade, more communication, more cooperation. True, the embargo’s legal framework, including the Helms-Burton Act, remains a roadblock. But the president has ample authority to diminish and bypass its restrictions when that would clearly serve U.S. interests.

Years before this major announcement, Obama had already lifted some restrictions, making it easier for Cubans living in the United States to send money and communicate with their families back home.

There will be powerful opponents to the president’s action, including all three Cuban-American U.S. senators and a handful of Cuban-American House members, though it is unlikely they will have much success at mobilizing strong public opposition. Polls show that most Americans and a significant number of Cuban-Americans — especially second- and third-generation — support increasing normalization. The elected officials, however, may have sufficient influence to secure a congressional resolution condemning the president’s action — though this would have little actual impact.

The more Cuba demonstrates a genuine willingness to permit freedom of expression, end its harsh punishment of dissent, avoid overt violations of human rights and expand economic opportunities, the easier it will be for Obama — or any other U.S. president — to continue a policy of normalization.

It is on this issue, however, that there is strong concern. Unlike Obama’s speech, which emphasized policy change, the remarks of Cuban President Raul Castro, who addressed his nation at the same time, focused more on what would remain unchanged in Cuba.

The Cubans did release U.S. citizen Alan Gross. But they would have done that any time since his arrest — if the United States had agreed to turn over the Cuban prisoners it released today. Havana also released a U.S. intelligence asset who had been in jailed for roughly two decades, and freed about 50 jailed dissidents. There are no guarantees, however, that Cuba is ready to tolerate dissent or that new arrests will not follow. Castro offered no decisive policy shifts. Let’s hope they will be forthcoming.

So, what does the United States get out of the reversal of its decades-old policy?

Washington gains enhanced credibility — worldwide and, more important, in Latin America. Year after year, the U.S. embargo on Cuba is vehemently denounced in the United Nations General Assembly, with the U.S. position supported by only one or two votes.

Every country in the Western Hemisphere without exception has regularly urged Washington to lift its embargo. How believable could Washington’s commitment to multilateralism and regional partnership be when all 32 Latin American and Caribbean nations objected to Cuba’s continuing exclusion from all Western Hemisphere leaders’ summit meetings?

Indeed, the decision by those leaders to invite Castro to next year’s hemispheric summit in Panama may have helped precipitate Obama’s policy turnaround.

The Obama administration’s decision may also bolster the world’s perception of Washington’s commitment to democracy. Political leaders and analysts across the globe have questioned the U.S. support because they view the embargo as helping to sustain Cuba’s repressive regime.

Historians will someday note that Obama has taken steps to realign U.S. policies on three issues that have vexed Latin America for many years — Cuba, the war on drugs and immigration.

Cuba, however, is seeking more material gains.

Maybe it is a coincidence that the U.S.-Cuba agreement announced today comes as Venezuela’s economy is reeling because of mismanagement and the steep decline in oil prices. The Cuban economy depends heavily on transfers from Venezuela — perhaps as much as $5 billion per year. The United States is probably the only possible substitute if the Venezuelan flow of capital were to stop.

Already, Cuba may be receiving $2 billion a year in remittances from Cuban-Americans in the United States and perhaps a billion more from trade and tourism. A rapprochement between the two countries would only multiply those figures.

Obama and Castro both expressed an interest in a more prosperous Cuba. They do not, however, claim a common concern about Cuban democracy.

PHOTO (TOP): A woman walks past a bicycle taxi with the U.S. and Cuban flags in Havana December 17, 2014. REUTERS/Enrique De La Osa

The most economic way to handle this ebola problem would be to employ Cuba in the fight against the ebola epidemic. Cuba holds one of the highest per capita ratios of health care individuals in the world, and they routinely offer assistance to poorer nations. They are a godsend. Think of the amount of assistance you could employ through Cuba with $6 billion.

Well at least the GOP/conservative politicians like Marco Rubio are living up to their name. With regards to Cuba, it is obvious that their mentality is still stuck in the past, specifically the 1960’s.

ZOMG! An evil communist nation only 90 miles from U.S. mainland, the horror!!!!!!

Get over it already and join the modern age where foreign policies based on such obtuse ideological lines is neither realistic or logical. The world is smarter now and is no longer willing to blindly follow America.

“The Obama administration’s decision may also bolster the world’s perception of Washington’s commitment to democracy”…Huh? People are really reaching to find positives for the US out of this deal. Let’s really show the world our commitment – build embassies in North Korea and Iran!

Same old Cuba, and the same old US. The combination means that the effort will fail. Cuba and the US will be enemies until the dying days of humanity. Personally, I will never trust Cuba any farther than I can throw the entire weight of Cuba. The cumulative effect is no change on either country. If Castro wants respect, then tell him to do something in his country that makes it better, but if he is looking for respect for communism, then why would anyone wanted to respect a failed system of government. Should we be saying, oh, you failed as a system of guiding your people, and now the US is going to reward that failure? No, no, and no once again. What is the price of restarting diplomatic relations? It is of no value, if this country is going to have to worry about where all of the Cuban Embassy staff is at all times. In all probability, this is nothing more than a Che’ Guerrero attempt at terrorism from Cuba.

The Cuban leadership says the “US must respect its Communist system”. How can anyone respect a system that has turned a country that could have been the Switzerland of the Caribbean into an under-developed dump. Castro came to power by murdering his opponents, and for years has repressed any dissent. He was upset when the US and USSR did not get into a thermonuclear war over the the Cuban Missile Crisis. He would rather have seen millions of persons dead, and for what, for the “revolution”? It is all made-up b.s. Cuba never had a “revolution” – instead, it had a giant leap backwards into a depressing and stunted economy controlled by a military junta. People running around with flags and little books with quotations of Castro will not save the country. Cuba looked like a Disney-land of people on a Hollywood set playing “socialism”. As they say: “Socialism is great until the money runs out.” And in Cuba, it ran out years ago.

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